Octagonal vs round shaped staff weapons@Matt-Chan, that would be true if you are using a stick that is the right size, but typically you would be shaping things out of a board from a larger tree. This gives you much more control over the grain in the final weapon. The straighter the grain, the better.

Do martial arts instructors also seek fitness instruction certifications?Nice answer. I agree completely with you, esp about the "more harm than good" part. I don't mind training technique, and even once had an instructor that said we should get fit in our own time and come to class ready to train technique. I've also seen some shocking warm up routines in schools, but this seems to be the exception rather than the rule.

How do you prepare for the stress of a real self-defense situation?I agree completely about the fear thing. The fear of getting hurt will cause us to do stupid things out of proportion to the real threat. Learning that a hit doesn't hurt as much as we fear it will is a huge lesson. Just like practicing breakfalls and learning that falling down is no big deal. This is not to say that a hit (or fall) can't be dangerous. In the news today, where I live, is a story about a 17yo who died after being hit once outside a nightclub. It's dangerous. But fear is dangerous too.